Communication system, server apparatus, and communication method

ABSTRACT

Disclosed herein is a communication system including: a first apparatus and a second apparatus being communication terminals at least one of which resides on a mobile object; and a server apparatus. The server apparatus includes: a determination block configured to determine whether the first and the second apparatuses are in close proximity to each other based on position data of the first apparatus and on position data of the second apparatus; and a communication block configured such that if the determination block determines that the first and the second apparatuses are in close proximity to each other, the communication block transmits preinstalled content data to at least one of the first and the second apparatuses.

This application is a continuation of application Ser. No. 15/042,539,filed on Feb. 12, 2016, which is a continuation application of U.S.application Ser. No. 13/693,258, filed Dec. 4, 2012, which is in turnbased upon and claims the benefit of priority from Japanese PatentApplication No. 2011-285727, filed on Dec. 27, 2011, the entire contentsof all of which are incorporated herein by reference.

BACKGROUND

The present disclosure relates to a communication system, a serverapparatus, and a communication method adapted to use a mobile terminalthat resides in a mobile object, for example.

There have been proposed systems that transmit and receive diverse datausing mobile terminals. For example, Japanese Patent Laid-open No.2002-163200 (called Patent Document 1 hereunder) discloses a system thatallows mobile phones to access a server to download data stored in thatserver. As another example, Japanese Patent Laid-open No. 2009-105928(called Patent Document 2 hereunder) discloses a communication systemthat allows terminals in close proximity to exchange data therebetween.

SUMMARY

One disadvantage of the technology described in Patent Document 1 isthat a user must perform operations to access the server. Onedisadvantage of the technology discussed in Patent Document 2 is thatwhen the terminals stay in close proximity to each other only for ashort period of time, the data exchanges therebetween may not becompleted in time.

The present disclosure has been made in view of the above circumstancesand it is desirable to provide a communication system, a serverapparatus, and a communication method whereby data is transmittedunfailingly to a mobile terminal close to a predetermined apparatus.

According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, there is provideda communication system including: a first apparatus and a secondapparatus being communication terminals at least one of which resides ona mobile object; and a server apparatus. The server apparatus includes:a determination block configured to determine whether the first and thesecond apparatuses are in close proximity to each other based onposition data of the first apparatus and on position data of the secondapparatus; and a communication block configured such that if thedetermination block determines that the first and the second apparatusesare in close proximity to each other, the communication block transmitspreinstalled content data to at least one of the first and the secondapparatuses.

According to another embodiment, there is provided a server apparatusincluding: a determination block configured to determine whether a firstapparatus and a second apparatus are in close proximity to each otherbased on position data of the first apparatus and on position data ofthe second apparatus; and a communication block configured such that ifthe determination block determines that the first and the secondapparatuses are in close proximity to each other, the communicationblock transmits preinstalled content data to at least one of the firstand the second apparatuses.

According to a further embodiment, there is provided a communicationmethod, in a communication system, including: determining whether afirst apparatus and a second apparatus are in close proximity to eachother based on position data of the first apparatus and on position dataof the second apparatus; and if it is determined that the first and thesecond apparatuses are in close proximity to each other, thentransmitting content data preinstalled in a server apparatus to at leastone of the first and the second apparatuses.

According to at least one of the above-outlined embodiments of thisdisclosure, it is possible to transmit data unfailingly to acommunication terminal in close proximity to a predetermined apparatus.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Further objects and advantages of the present disclosure will becomeapparent upon a reading of the following description and appendeddrawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a typical communication system;

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a typical structure of a serverapparatus;

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a typical structure of a clientapparatus;

FIG. 4 is a sequence chart explaining a typical flow of an uploadprocess;

FIG. 5 is a sequence chart explaining a typical flow of a contenttransmission process;

FIG. 6 is a schematic view explaining an application example of thisdisclosure; and

FIG. 7 is a schematic view explaining another application example ofthis disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Some preferred embodiments of the present disclosure will now bedescribed below by reference to the accompanying drawings. Thedescription will be given under following headings:

<1. Embodiments>

<2. Applications>

<3. Variations>

It should be noted that the embodiments, applications and variations tobe discussed below are merely preferable examples and are not limitativeof the present disclosure.

1. Embodiments

[Communication System]

FIG. 1 shows a typical configuration of a communication system embodyingthis disclosure. A communication system 1 in FIG. 1 includes a serverapparatus 10 and a plurality of client apparatuses 20 that can beconnected to the server apparatus 10. Whereas the client apparatuses 20a and 20 b are shown in FIG. 1 as representative of the clientapparatuses 20, other client apparatuses may be connected to the serverapparatus 10 as well. In the ensuing description where there is no needto distinguish the individual client apparatuses from one another, theymay be generically referred to as the client apparatus 20.

The server apparatus 10 stores content data. The content data mayinclude music data, image data such as still images and moving images,text data, and combinations of these types of data. The text data may bedata that represents short sentences (e.g., tweets) and URLs (UniformResource Locators). The server apparatus 10 transmits the content datato the client apparatus 20 via a network.

The content data to be stored in the server apparatus 10 may betransmitted from a content providing apparatus 30 for example. Thecontent providing apparatus 30 may be a personal computer for example.Alternatively, the client apparatus 20 a and/or 20 b may transmit thecontent data to the server apparatus 10. A user of the client apparatus20 may be the same as, or different from, a user of the contentproviding apparatus 30.

At least one of the client apparatuses 20 a and 20 b is a communicationterminal that resides on a mobile object. The mobile object in thiscontext may be a bicycle, a vehicle, a train or the like that moves at arelatively higher speed than the walking human. The terminal thatresides on the mobile object may be a mobile terminal carried by anindividual on board the mobile object, a communication apparatus mountedon the mobile object, or a mobile terminal attached to a predeterminedposition of the mobile object. The communication terminal need not beincorporated within the mobile object. For example, part or all of thecommunication terminal may be attached to and exposed from the body ofthe mobile object. As another example, part or all of the communicationterminal may appear outside the mobile object when the terminal is beingused.

The client apparatus 20 transmits its identification data as well as GPS(Global Positioning System) data including its position information tothe server apparatus 10. The identification data and GPS data thustransmitted are received by the server apparatus 10. The GPS data mayinclude data about the speed at which the client apparatus 20 is movingand directional data about the direction in which the client apparatus20 is traveling. The speed data and the directional data may becalculated by the server apparatus 10.

The client apparatus 20 receives the content data transmitted from theserver apparatus 10. Alternatively, the client apparatus 20 may uploadthe content data to the server apparatus 10.

[Typical Structure of the Server Apparatus]

FIG. 2 shows a typical structure of the server apparatus 10. The serverapparatus 10 may include a control block 11, a communication block 12,and a storage block 13 for example. The control block 11 may typicallyhave a CPU (Central Processing Unit) that controls the components of theserver apparatus 10. The control block 11 includes a ROM (Read OnlyMemory) that stores predetermined programs and a RAM (Random AccessMemory) used to temporarily store work areas and data during programexecution.

The control block 11 determines whether the client apparatuses 20 a and20 b are in close proximity to each other by referencing, say, the GPSdata from the client apparatuses 20 a and 20 b.

The control block 11 may identify the speed at which the clientapparatus 20 is moving and the direction in which the client apparatus20 is traveling. For example, the control block 11 may identify thespeed and the traveling direction of the client apparatus 20 a bymonitoring changes in the position of the client apparatus 20 a.Likewise, the control block 11 may identify the speed and the travelingdirection of the client apparatus 20 b by monitoring changes in theposition of the client apparatus 20 b. The control block 11 may thendetermine whether the client apparatuses 20 a and 20 b pass each otherby referencing the information about their positions and their movingdirections.

The communication block 12 is an interface used by the server apparatus10 to communicate with the client apparatus 20 and content providingapparatus 30. Using the communication block 12, the server apparatus 10communicates with the client apparatus 20 under a predetermined protocol(e.g., HTTP (Hypertext Transfer Protocol)). For example, the contentdata may be transmitted from the server apparatus 10 to the clientapparatus 20 through the communication block 12. Also, GPS data andcontent data may be received via the communication block 12.

The storage block 13 may include a hard disk for example, and stores thecontent data provided by the client apparatus 20 and content providingapparatus 30. The content data may be transmitted by the clientapparatuses 20 a and 20 b, for example. The content data may also beprovided by the content providing apparatus 30. The storage block 13 maybe a semiconductor memory or the like but should preferably have a largecapacity.

The content data is stored in association with identification data. Theidentification data includes IDs (identifiers) each assigned to each ofthe client apparatuses and also an ID assigned to each user. Referencingthe identification data can identify the client apparatus or the userthat uploaded the content data of interest. Alternatively, the contentdata may be associated with other data. For example, data about a partyto which given content data is disclosed may be associated with thecontent data in question.

The storage block 13 may be an independent server apparatus. That is,the server apparatus 10 of the communication system 1 may have a serverapparatus that has the control block 11 and another server apparatusthat has the storage block 13. The server apparatus having the controlblock 11 may communicate with the server apparatus having the storageblock 13 to exchange content data therebetween. In other words, theserver apparatus according to the embodiment of this disclosure is notlimited to a single server apparatus arrangement and embraces a setup ofa plurality of server apparatuses carrying out server functions on adistributed basis.

[Typical Performance of the Server Apparatus]

Typical performance of the server apparatus 10 is explained below. Theserver apparatus 10 gets the communication block 12 to receive GPS dataand identification data sent from the client apparatus 20 a. The serverapparatus 10 also uses the communication block 12 to receive GPS dataand identification data transmitted from the client apparatus 20 b. Forexample, the GPS data and identification data may be transmittedautomatically and periodically (e.g., at intervals of 30 seconds) fromthe client apparatuses.

The GPS data and identification data received by the communication block12 are fed to the control block 11. By referencing the GPS data andidentification data, the control block 11 determines the positions ofthe client apparatuses 20 a and 20 b. The control block 11 thendetermines whether the client apparatuses 20 a and 20 b are in closeproximity to each other. For example, it is determined whether theclient apparatuses 20 a and 20 b are within 100 meters of each other.Obviously, the proximate distance of 100 meters is only an example andmay be changed as needed.

Upon determining that the client apparatuses 20 a and 20 b are in closeproximity to each other, the control block 11 performs a search process.The search process involves searching the identification data stored inthe storage block 13 for any content data that may have been provided bythe client apparatus 20 a or 20 b. If there is no content data providedby the client apparatus 20 a or 20 b, the process is terminated.

If it is determined that there exists the content data provided by theclient apparatus 20 a or 20 b, the control block 11 performs a processof offering the content data. For example, suppose that the storageblock 13 stores content data “a” provided by the client apparatus 20 a.In that case, upon determining that the client apparatuses 20 a and 20 bare in close proximity to each other, the control block 11 reads thecontent data “a” from the storage block 13 and transmits the retrieveddata “a” to the client apparatus 20 b through the communication block12. The content data “a” is then received and reproduced by the clientapparatus 20 b.

As another example, suppose that the storage block 13 stores contentdata “a” provided by the client apparatus 20 a and content data “b”provided by the client apparatus 20 b. In this case, upon determiningthat the client apparatuses 20 a and 20 b are in close proximity to eachother, the control block 11 reads the content data “a” and content data“b” from the storage block 13.

The control block 11 then transmits the retrieved content data “a” tothe client apparatus 20 b via the communication block 12. The contentdata “a” is then received and reproduced by the client apparatus 20 b.Also, the control block 11 transmits the retrieved content data “b” tothe client apparatus 20 a through the communication block 12. Thecontent data “b” is then received and reproduced by the client apparatus20 a.

In the manner explained above, at least one of the client apparatuses inclose proximity to each other can be supplied with the content dataprovided by the other client apparatus. There is no need for the user ofany client apparatus to perform operations to obtain the content data.

The control block 11 of the server apparatus 10 may determine whetherthe client apparatuses 20 a and 20 b have crossed each other. In thiscontext, the expression “crossing each other” means that the clientapparatuses 20 a and 20 b gradually approach each other, are in theclosest distance to each other at a certain point in time, and thendistance themselves gradually from each other. The closest distance maybe a few meters or less, for example. By monitoring changes in thepositions of the client apparatuses 20 a and 20 b, the control block 11can determine whether the client apparatuses 20 a and 20 b have crossedeach other.

Upon determining that the client apparatuses 20 a and 20 b have crossedeach other, the control block 11 transmits the content data to at leastone of the client apparatuses 20 a and 20 b as explained above. Thetiming for transmitting the content data is typically just when theclient apparatuses 20 a and 20 b cross each other. Because the serverapparatus 10 transmits the content data, the data can be sentunfailingly even if the client apparatuses 20 a and 20 b cross eachother in a very short time.

Alternatively, the timing for transmitting the content data may beasynchronous with the timing of the client apparatuses 20 a and 20 bcrossing each other. For example, the content data may be transmittedfrom the server apparatus 10 upon elapse of a predetermined time periodafter the client apparatuses 20 a and 20 b have crossed each other. Thetime period may be a few minutes long, or may be determined as desired.Because the server apparatus 10 transmits the content data, it ispossible to change as needed the timing for sending the content data inreference to just when the client apparatuses cross each other.

[Client Apparatuses]

FIG. 3 shows a typical structure of the client apparatus 20. Forexample, the client apparatus 20 may include a control unit 21, acommunication module 22, a GPS module 23, a display unit 24, and aninput unit 25.

The control block 21 may have a CPU for example, and controls thecomponents of the client apparatus 20. The control block 21 includes aROM that stores predetermined programs and a RAM used to temporarilystore work areas and data during program execution.

The communication module 22 receives the content data transmitted fromthe server apparatus 10 for example. Also, the communication module 22transmits GPS data and identification data to the server apparatus 10.The GPS module 23 acquires position information about the clientapparatus 20 before generating the GPS data indicative of where theclient apparatus 20 is positioned. The GPS data may include speed dataand directional data about the client apparatus 20 following thecalculation of the speed at which the client apparatus 20 is moving andthe direction in which the client apparatus 20 is traveling.

The GPS data thus generated is fed to the communication module 22 undercontrol of the control unit 21. The GPS data and the identification datafrom the client apparatus 20 are supplied to the server apparatus 10 viathe communication module 22.

The display unit 24 includes a display panel such as an LCD (LiquidCrystal Display) panel or an organic EL (Electroluminescence) panel anda driver adapted to drive that display panel. The display unit 24displays the content data transmitted from the server apparatus 10 forexample. The display unit 24 may also display other information such asa menu screen adapted to operate the client apparatus 20.

The input unit 25 may include buttons, switches, dial keys and the like,furnished on the client apparatus 20. Alternatively, the display unit 24may be a touch panel offering the function of the input unit 25.

The above-described structure of the client apparatus 20 is only anexample and may be modified as needed. For example, the client apparatus20 may provide imaging and telephone capabilities. The client apparatus20 may be equipped with a speaker audibly reproducing content data.

The individual client apparatuses 20 may or may not have the samestructure. For example, the structure of the client apparatus 20 a maybe different from that of the client apparatus 20 b.

[Typical Performance of the Client Apparatuses]

The client apparatus 20 transmits its GPS data to the server apparatus10. The GPS data may be generated in an appropriate format based on theposition information acquired by the GPS module 23, for example. The GPSdata thus generated is supplied to the control unit 21. The control unit21 supplements the supplied GPS data with identification data andforwards both the GPS data and the identification data to thecommunication module 22. The communication module 22 transmits the GPSdata and identification data to the server apparatus 10. The GPS dataand identification data from the client apparatus 20 are fed to theserver apparatus 10 periodically (e.g., at intervals of 30 seconds).

The client apparatus 20 receives the content data sent from the serverapparatus 10. The content data transmitted from the server apparatus 10may be received by the communication module 22, for example. The contentdata received by the communication module 22 is supplied to the controlunit 21. The control unit 21 performs such processes as demodulation anderror correction on the content data. The content data thus processed issent to the display unit 24. Given the content data, the display unit 24may display captions, images, etc. The content data may also bereproduced audibly.

Notification may be given by display or by sound indicating that thecontent data has been transmitted from the server apparatus 10. The userof the client apparatus 20 may then select whether or not to reproducethe content data.

The client apparatus 20 may be used to upload content data to the serverapparatus 10. For example, the user of the client apparatus 20 may inputtext explaining how the user feels about his or her favorite food, byuse of the input unit 25. Text data corresponding to the input text isthen fed to the control unit 21. The control unit 21 supplements thetext data with identification data, and forwards both the text data andthe identification data to the communication module 22. Thecommunication module 22 uploads the text data and identification data tothe server apparatus 10.

The content data that may be uploaded is not limited to text data. Forexample, image data obtained by the client apparatus 20 may be uploadedas content data. A combination of image data and text data may also beuploaded as content data. As another example, the client apparatus 20may include a storage unit adapted to store the content data provided byother apparatuses. The content data thus stored in the storage unit maythen be uploaded to the server apparatus 10.

The structure and performance of the content providing apparatus 30 mayapproximately be the same as the structure and performance of theabove-described client apparatus 20, for example.

[Typical Upload Process]

FIG. 4 shows a typical flow of the upload process in which content datais uploaded to the server apparatus. The example of FIG. 4 is one inwhich the client apparatus 20 uploads content data to the serverapparatus 10. The processing on the side of the server apparatus 10 iscarried out under control of the control block 11, for example. Theprocessing on the side of the client apparatus 20 is performed undercontrol of the control unit 21, for example.

First, the client apparatus 20 transmits identification data and contentdata (step S1). The transmitted identification data and content data arereceived by the server apparatus 10. The server apparatus 10 stores thereceived identification data and content data into the storage block 13that serves as a typical database (step S2).

Next, the server apparatus 10 transmits to the client apparatus 20 anotification of whether or not the identification data and content datahave been successfully registered (step S3). If the notification fromthe server apparatus 10 announces a failed registration, the clientapparatus 20 retransmits the identification data and content data to theserver apparatus 10. If the notification of a successful registration isnot received after the identification data and content data have beentransmitted a predetermined number of times, the display unit 24 of theclient apparatus 20 may display an error indication.

The content data may be classified into such categories as “trafficinformation,” “sales information,” “gourmet information,” “weatherinformation,” and “disaster information” when stored. Furthermore,solely the previously registered client apparatuses and contentproviding apparatuses may be allowed to perform the process of uploadingcontent data.

In the same manner described above, the content providing apparatus 30may upload content data to the server apparatus 10.

[Content Data Transmission Process]

FIG. 5 shows a typical flow of the process of transmitting content data.The processing on the side of the server apparatus 10 is carried outunder control of the control block 11, for example. The processing onthe side of the client apparatus 20 is performed under control of thecontrol unit 21, for example. The example of FIG. 5 is one in which thecontent data uploaded beforehand by the client apparatus 20 b (the datawill be called the content data P hereunder where appropriate) is storedin the server apparatus 10. In this example, the content data P istransmitted to the client apparatus 20 a.

The client apparatus 20 transmits its identification data and GPS datato the server apparatus 10 (step S10). For example, the client apparatus20 a may transmit to the server apparatus 10 the identification dataidentifying the client apparatus 20 a and the GPS data representing theposition information about the client apparatus 20 a. Also, the clientapparatus 20 b may transmit to the server apparatus 10 theidentification data identifying the client apparatus 20 b and the GPSdata representative of the position information about the clientapparatus 20 b.

By referencing the identification data and GPS data, the serverapparatus 10 acquires the positions of the client apparatuses 20 a and20 b. The server apparatus 10 then determines whether the clientapparatuses 20 a and 20 b are in close proximity to each other.

Upon this determination, the server apparatus 10 determines whether ornot communication can take place between the client apparatuses 20 a and20 b (step S11). In this process of communication occurrencedetermination, if the client apparatuses 20 a and 20 b are found inclose proximity to each other, then the server apparatus 10 determinesthat communication can occur therebetween. If the client apparatuses 20a and 20 b are not found in close proximity to each other, the serverapparatus 10 determines that communication does not take placetherebetween.

The server apparatus 10 transmits the result of the communicationoccurrence determination to the client apparatus 20 a (step S12). Uponreceipt of a notification that communication does not occur, the clientapparatus 20 a waits for the next notification to be transmitted.

Upon determining in step S11 that communication can occur, the serverapparatus 10 transmits a communication occurrence notification to theclient apparatus 20 a. At this point, the communication occurrencenotification may include a communication ID identifying thecommunication to take place and the amount of the content data Pscheduled to be transmitted by the server apparatus 10.

The client apparatus 20 a receives the communication occurrencenotification indicating that communication can occur (step S13). Theclient apparatus 20 a then requests the server apparatus 10 to start thecommunication (step S14). At this point, the communication start requestmay include a communication ID and the amount of data that can bereceived by the client apparatus 20 a in one go.

In response to the communication start request, the server apparatus 10transmits the content data P to the client apparatus 20 a (step S15). Ifthe amount of the content data P is too large to be transmitted in onego, the content data P may be divided into portions before beingtransmitted.

As explained above, upon determination that the client apparatuses 20 aand 20 b are in close proximity to each other, the content data uploadedpreviously by the client apparatus 20 b may be transmitted to the clientapparatus 20 a. In like manner, the content data uploaded beforehand bythe client apparatus 20 a may be transmitted to the client apparatus 20b. Even if the communication occurrence notification is received in stepS13, the client apparatus 20 a may choose to refuse continuation of thecommunication and thus not to download the content data.

The client apparatus 20 may select a desired category of content data sothat only the content data of the selected category will be transmittedfrom the server apparatus 10. With the content data category thusselected, even if there are many kinds of content data, only the contentdata that fits in the category desired by the user will be transmittedfrom the server apparatus 10.

2. Applications

A number of applications of this disclosure will now be explained. Itshould be noted that these applications are not limitative of thepresent disclosure.

[First Application]

Suppose that as shown in FIG. 6, vehicles travel in opposite lanes L1and L2, that vehicle A travels in the lane L1, and that a person onboard the vehicle A possesses a mobile terminal serving as the clientapparatus 20 a. In view of traffic safety, the person in possession ofthe mobile terminal should not be the driver of the vehicle.Alternatively, the client apparatus 20 a may be mounted on board thevehicle A. The mobile terminal is moved in keeping with the vehicle Atraveling in the lane.

For example, the user of the client apparatus 20 a then witnesses atraffic accident that took place near a position P0 in the lane L2. Atthis point, the user uploads text data “A traffic accident occurred nearposition P0” to the server apparatus 10 by use of the client apparatus20 a. The vehicle A travels from there to position P1, to position P2, .. . , along the lane L1. While the vehicle A is traveling, the GPS dataand identification data of the client apparatus 20 a are transmittedperiodically to the server apparatus 10. The server apparatus 10acquires the GPS data and identification data from the client apparatus20 a.

At a position P30 a few kilometers from the position P0 for example, thevehicle A crosses a vehicle 30 traveling in the line L2. A passenger onboard the vehicle 30 possesses a mobile terminal corresponding to theclient apparatus 20 b. The GPS data and identification data of theclient apparatus 20 b are transmitted periodically to the serverapparatus 10.

By referencing the identification data and GPS data, the serverapparatus 10 determines whether or not the client apparatuses 20 a and20 b have crossed each other. At this point, the server apparatus 10determines that the client apparatuses 20 a and 20 b have crossed eachother near the position P30. The server apparatus 10 then supplies theclient apparatus 20 b with the text data uploaded from the clientapparatus 20 a. The client apparatus 20 b receives the text data thussupplied.

The client apparatus 20 b then reproduces the text data. For example,the display unit of the client apparatus 20 b may display the text “Atraffic accident occurred near position P0.” Instead of, or along with,the display, the text data may be audibly reproduced. When the text datais reproduced, a driver of the vehicle 30 can recognize that a trafficaccident has occurred ahead near the position P0. In such a case, thedriver of the vehicle 30 may select a road different from the lane L2 soas to bypass a road block or a traffic jam that may result from theaccident.

The text data may be transmitted in a manner asynchronous with thetiming of the vehicles A and 30 crossing each other. That is, there isno need for the vehicles A and 30 to be in close proximity to each otherwhen the text data is reproduced.

The vehicles A and 30 cross each other in a very short time. In apeer-to-peer direct communication between the client apparatuses 20 aand 20 b, it may be difficult to complete the transmission and receptionof content data therebetween in such a short time period. According tothe embodiment of this disclosure, by contrast, the server apparatus 10transmits content data in a manner asynchronous with the timing of thevehicles crossing each other. This makes it possible unfailingly totransmit the content data to each of the client apparatuses in closeproximity to each other.

The users of the client apparatuses can acquire traffic informationwithout performing operations such as those for selecting a website thatoffers traffic information. Where the client apparatus 20 b is mountedon each of vehicles 1, 2, etc., the client apparatus 20 b may each besupplied with text data.

[Second Application]

A second application of this disclosure will now be explained. Supposethat as shown in FIG. 7, a retail store 40 is located along the lane L1.The retail store 40 is furnished with a personal computer as a typicalcontent providing apparatus 30. The personal computer uploads contentdata to the server apparatus 10. The content data may be saleinformation about the retail store 40 for example. At this point, thesale information is uploaded to the server apparatus 10 along withidentification data “AA0” for example. The server apparatus 10 storesthe sale information about the retail store 40 in association with theidentification data “AA0.”

A salesperson of the retail store 40 carrying the client apparatus 20 agets on board a vehicle B. In this case, the client apparatus 20 a maybe set in such a manner that the GPS data of the client apparatus 20 ais transmitted to the server apparatus 10 together with theidentification data “AA0.” After the setting, the vehicle B startstraveling in the lane L1.

The vehicle B traveling in the lane L1 crosses the vehicles 1, 2, . . ., 30 traveling in the opposite lane L2. In this example, it is assumedthat a passenger of the vehicle 2 possesses a client apparatus 20 b ₁and a passenger of the vehicle 30 is in possession of a client apparatus20 b ₂. The server apparatus 10 determines that at the position P2, thevehicles B and 2 have crossed each other. The server apparatus 10transmits content data to the client apparatus 20 b ₁ possessed by thepassenger of the vehicle 2. That is, the server apparatus 10 reads thesale information connected to the identification data “AA0” andtransmits the retrieved sale information to the client apparatus 20 b ₁.In turn, the client apparatus 20 b ₁ reproduces the received saleinformation.

Likewise, at the time of the vehicles B and 30 crossing each other atthe position P30, the sale information is transmitted to the vehicle 30.The vehicle 30 then reproduces the received sale information. In thismanner, advertising may be carried out effectively for users in theproximity of the retail store 40. The sale information may include linkinformation for linkage to map data showing the way to the retail store40. If there exist client apparatuses on board vehicles other than thevehicles 2 and 30, the sale information may also be transmitted to theseclient apparatuses.

The personal computer installed in the retail store 40 may be the clientapparatus 20 a. In this case, the client apparatus 20 a remainsstationary, and the client apparatus 20 b alone serves as thecommunication terminal on board a mobile object. The personal computerof the retail store 40 uploads the identification data, GPS data, andcontent data (e.g., sale information) to the server apparatus 10.

As the vehicle 2 is traveling towards the retail store 40, the serverapparatus 10 determines that the client apparatuses 20 a and 20 b arecoming into close proximity to each other. The server apparatus 10transmits to the vehicle 2 the sale information uploaded by the personalcomputer (client apparatus 20 a) of the retail store 40. Likewise, whenthe vehicle 30 traveling towards the retail store 40 comes into closeproximity to the latter, the server apparatus 10 transmits the saleinformation to the vehicle 30.

The sale information may be supplemented with distance information. Thesale information may be transmitted to the client apparatuses locatedwithin a range defined by the distance information attached to the saleinformation. For example, the distance information may be set to denotea few kilometers. The sale information may be transmitted to any clientapparatus that may come within the range of a few kilometers of theretail store 40. When the sale information is transmitted to clientapparatuses at a predetermined distance from the retail store 40, theusers of these client apparatuses can take their time in decidingwhether or not to visit the retail store 40.

The content data may also be supplemented with timing data designatingthe timing for transmitting the data in question. For example, thetiming data may denote the timing of the client apparatuses 20 a and 20b crossing each other, or the timing of the elapse of a predeterminedtime period after the client apparatuses 20 a and 20 b have crossed eachother. The timing data is not limited to time information; the timingdata may also be the above-described distance information. When theserver apparatus transmits the content data, the timing of the clientapparatuses crossing each other is not limitative of when the serverapparatus can transmit the data; the timing for transmitting the contentdata may be determined as desired.

3. Variations

It should be understood that the disclosure is not limited to theabove-described embodiment and applications, and that various variationsmay be made. Variations of the disclosure will now be explained.

The GPS module may include a gyro sensor or the like. In addition to theposition information, the GPS module may detect the traveling direction.

Whereas the embodiment and applications above were shown to include theclient apparatuses 20 a and 20 b, there may be provided three or moreclient apparatuses. For example, when the client apparatuses 20 a, 20 band 20 c come into close proximity to one another, the server apparatusmay transmit content data to the three client apparatuses. The clientapparatuses may each be mounted on a mobile object such as a vehicle.

The above embodiment, applications and variations of this disclosure maybe structured and handled in suitable combinations so far as they arenot technically inconsistent with one another. The order in which theprocesses explained above as examples were shown to proceed may bemodified or changed as desired as long as there occurs no technicalinconsistency in the flow of the processing.

In addition to the form of apparatuses, the present disclosure may beimplemented as a method, a program, or a recording medium that recordsthe program. Furthermore, this disclosure may also be applied to aso-called cloud system in which the processes discussed above asexamples may be performed by a plurality of apparatuses on a distributedbasis. Also, this disclosure may be an apparatus that performs at leastpart of the above-described processes.

The present disclosure may also have following configurations.

(1) A communication system including:

a first apparatus and a second apparatus being communication terminalsat least one of which resides on a mobile object; and

a server apparatus,

in which the server apparatus includes

-   -   a determination block configured to determine whether the first        and the second apparatuses are in close proximity to each other        based on position data of the first apparatus and on position        data of the second apparatus, and    -   a communication block configured such that if the determination        block determines that the first and the second apparatuses are        in close proximity to each other, the communication block        transmits preinstalled content data to at least one of the first        and the second apparatuses.

(2) The communication system as described in paragraph (1) above, inwhich the communication block receives the position data transmittedfrom the first apparatus as well as the position data transmitted fromthe second apparatus.

(3) The communication system as described in paragraph (1) or (2) above,further including

a content providing apparatus configured to provide the content data tothe server apparatus.

(4) The communication system as described in paragraph (1) or (2) above,in which the content data is provided by at least one of the first andthe second apparatuses.

(5) The communication system as described in any one of paragraphs (1)through (4) above,

in which the first and the second apparatuses are mobile objects, and

the determination block determines whether the first and the secondapparatuses pass each other.

(6) The communication system as described in paragraph (5) above, inwhich, if the determination block determines that the first and thesecond apparatuses pass each other at a predetermined timing, thecommunication block transmits the content data in a manner asynchronouswith the predetermined timing.

(7) The communication system as described in any one of paragraphs (1)through (6) above, in which the content data is associated with dataabout the timing at which the content data is transmitted.

(8) A server apparatus including:

a determination block configured to determine whether a first apparatusand a second apparatus are in close proximity to each other based onposition data of the first apparatus and on position data of the secondapparatus; and

a communication block configured such that if the determination blockdetermines that the first and the second apparatuses are in closeproximity to each other, the communication block transmits preinstalledcontent data to at least one of the first and the second apparatuses.

(9) A communication method, in a communication system, including:

determining whether a first apparatus and a second apparatus are inclose proximity to each other based on position data of the firstapparatus and on position data of the second apparatus; and

if it is determined that the first and the second apparatuses are inclose proximity to each other, then transmitting content datapreinstalled in a server apparatus to at least one of the first and thesecond apparatuses.

The present disclosure contains subject matter related to that disclosedin Japanese Priority Patent Application JP 2011-285727 filed in theJapan Patent Office on Dec. 27, 2011, the entire content of which ishereby incorporated by reference.

What is claimed is:
 1. A communication system comprising: acommunication terminal and another communication terminal; and a serverapparatus, wherein the server apparatus includes circuitry configured toreceive position data of the communication terminal and position data ofthe another communication terminal, determine at least one of a speed ofmovement and a direction of movement of at least one of thecommunication terminal and the another communication terminal, determinewhether the communication terminal and the another communicationterminal are within a predetermined distance of each other and pass eachother based on the position data of the communication terminal, theposition data of the another communication terminal, and said at leastone of the speed of the movement and the direction of the movement, andtransmit, if it is determined that the communication terminal and theanother communication terminal are within the predetermined distance ofeach other and pass each other, preinstalled content data to at leastone of the communication terminal and the another communicationterminal.
 2. The communication system according to claim 1, wherein thecircuitry of the server apparatus is configured to receive the positiondata transmitted from the communication terminal as well as the positiondata transmitted from the another communication terminal.
 3. Thecommunication system according to claim 1, further comprising a contentproviding apparatus including circuitry configured to provide thecontent data to the server apparatus.
 4. The communication systemaccording to claim 1, wherein the content data is provided by at leastone of the communication terminal and the another communicationterminal.
 5. The communication system according to claim 1, wherein thecommunication terminal and the another communication terminal are mobileobjects.
 6. The communication system according to claim 5, wherein, ifit is determined that the communication terminal and the anothercommunication terminal pass each other at a predetermined timing, thecircuitry of the server apparatus is configured to transmit the contentdata in a manner asynchronous with the predetermined timing.
 7. Thecommunication system according to claim 1, wherein the content data isassociated with data about the timing at which the content data istransmitted.
 8. A communication method performed using a communicationsystem comprising a communication terminal, another communicationterminal, and a server apparatus including circuitry, the methodcomprising: receiving, using the circuitry, position data of thecommunication terminal and position data of the another communicationterminal, determining, using the circuitry, at least one of a speed ofmovement and a direction of movement of at least one of thecommunication terminal and the another communication terminal,determining, using the circuitry, whether the communication terminal andthe another communication terminal are within a predetermined distanceof each other and pass each other based on the position data of thecommunication terminal, the position data of the another communicationterminal, and said at least one of the speed of the movement and thedirection of the movement, and transmitting, using the circuitry, if itis determined that the communication terminal and the anothercommunication terminal are within the predetermined distance of eachother and pass each other, preinstalled content data to at least one ofthe communication terminal and the another communication terminal.